Argument Against Suicide Terrorism
Suicide Terrorism
Introduction
September 11, 2001 is a date that is forever embedded into the minds and hearts of most U.S. Citizens. On this date, multiple terrorist attacks were unleashed on the country, killing 2,973 civilians, as well as the 19 hijackers, and injuring over 6,000 others. Globally, this was the largest suicide terrorist attack ever, and while it was by no means the first, it was by far the worst (September 11 Attacks, n.d.).
Suicide terrorism is said to date back to biblical times with the story of Samson defeating 3,000 Philistines by killing himself along with them (Suicide Attacks, n.d.). Centuries later, suicide terrorism has become an increasingly popular method of furthering religious, political, and military …show more content…
agendas, but contrary to popular belief, religious agendas are actually the least popular reason for suicide terrorism. There is not currently a vast amount of information available about suicide terrorism, and not much research has been done on the subject, but what has been done has been vital. The current research has led to an understanding of the reasons for suicide terrorism, and an understanding of the individuals that commit these crimes. The only issue is that the research varies from researcher to researcher.
Literature Review
Article Summaries
The article “The Role of Religion in the Generation of Suicide Bombers” by Sadik H. Kassim seeks to dispense with the idea that suicide terrorism is largely based on religion. Kassim details the history of suicide bombings, gives statistical data on who commits these crimes, and also gives alternative reasons for these attacks (Kassim, 2008).
Kassim begins the article by explaining that most people believe that suicide bombings are rooted in religion, yet the statistical data appears to defy that idea. The author continues by revealing the types of individuals that commit these bombings, and contrary to popular belief, these individuals do not appear to be mentally ill, and many of these individuals are college-educated, most have families, and most come from middle to upper class families. This article sheds light on many common misconceptions of suicide attacks, and really gives the reader a good sense of what these individuals are about (Kassim, 2008).
The article “The Phenomenon of Suicide Bombing: A Review of the Psychological and Nonpsychological Factors” by Meytal Grimland, Alan Apter, and Ad Kerkhof attempts to bring logic to somewhat of an illogical process. The authors present various reasons and typologies to explain who commits suicide bombings and why. The article begins by giving a short history of suicide bombings, which some might be surprised to find can only be dated back to the early 1980s. The authors cite numerous examples of events that are commonly misrepresented as suicide bombings, dating all the way back to biblical times with the story of Samson (Grimland, M. et al., 2006).
In the next section, Grimland, Apter, and Kerkhof focus on the epidemiological aspects of suicide terrorism. Apparently, suicide attacks have increased drastically in the last five years, and are used to further political agendas. Suicide bombings are usually motivated by nationalistic pride, the need for revenge, hatred, or military strategy. These individuals generally have no psychological issues. Grimland, Apter, and Kerkhof go on to discuss the role of the media in glorifying suicide bombings. According to the article, culture and religion do play major roles in these attacks. From Judaism to Christianity to Islam, many of these groups perform these attacks based upon the cultures and religions that they have been taught to hate (Grimland, M. et al., 2006).
The article “Suicide Bombers, Terror, History, and Religion” by Niccolo Caldararo is an article that looks into multiple facets of suicide terrorism, but the main focus is that suicide terrorism is not a new phenomenon and should not be treated as such, and by doing so, the media is promoting suicide terrorism. The article gives a history of suicide terrorism, which it attempts to date back to the mass suicide of the Xanthians during the Roman Civil War, which was in 42 B.C. It goes on to discuss facts and frequency of suicide terrorism in relation to different terrorist groups, such as the Tamil Tigers, the Viet Minh, and the Turkish PKK. The article concludes by warning the United States that instead of looking at suicide terrorists, analyzing them, and trying to figure out why they would do what they do, we need to look within our own country and figure out what it is that we are doing to make the suicide terrorists want to do what they do (Caldararo, 2006).
The article “Mishandling Suicide Terrorism” by Scott Atran takes a look at the reasons for suicide terrorism, and basically explains why the tactics that our country has devised to combat suicide terrorism may not work, and what other options are available. The article begins by giving a bit of background on suicide terrorism and how popular it has become in order to emphasize the need for a solution. Atran then goes on to criticize our country for not putting enough effort or funding into seeking a solution for suicide terrorism. Next, the author clears up many misconceptions about suicide terrorism, by explaining that the individuals are not ignorant, do not live in poverty, and do have families and friends (Atran, 2004).
Atran explains that suicide terrorists, as well as their supporters are not irrational, which is what most people would tend to believe. The individuals involved in suicide terrorism are usually doing so because of political, religious, or economic reasons, which is really not at all irrational. The author goes on to discuss studies where average individuals have been pushed to the limits to test their penchant for evil, and many rational, sensible individuals can be pushed to extreme levels that one would never believe themselves capable of. Atran concludes by giving methods for the United States to be able to stop suicide terrorism, such as pulling out of other countries. He quotes defense attorney Robert McNamara as saying “We don’t have the God-given right to shape every nation to our own image,” and this statement furthers the idea that maybe if we minded our own business, we would not have the issues that we do with suicide terrorism, and terrorism period (Atran, 2004).
“Methods and Findings in the Study of Suicide Terrorism” by Robert A. Pape is an article that seeks to supplement Pape’s 2003 article “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism”, and update some information that may be considered outdated. He describes the circumstances under which suicide terrorism is most likely, which include: a national community is occupied by foreign power, the foreign power is a democracy, the foreign power is of a different religion, and ordinary violence has not been successful. He then goes on to explain why his first article is not null and void and that it should still be considered as valid, but that some of the information has changed due to time, which is inevitable with articles of this nature (Pape, 2008).
“The Moral Logic and Growth of Suicide Terrorism” is an article by Scott Atran. This article explains the reasons for suicide attacks according to Atran. He also spends much of the article disagreeing with some of the findings of Robert Pape, stating that “Pape’s basic data, correlations, and conclusions about the causes of terrorism are problematic, outdated in the wake of the September 11 attacks and sometimes deeply misleading.” He explains that there are four critical flaws in Pape’s research. He believes that there are sampling issues. He also believes that Pape’s conclusions are both too narrow and too broad. He states that Pape should not judge the success of suicide tactics on whether concessions are made by the terrorized country. Lastly, he believes that Pape made an error when stating that suicide terrorism is scarcely related to Salafi ideology (Atran, 2006).
Atran moves on in his article to discuss the fact that Al Qaeda has been blamed for much of the suicide terrorism and terrorism in general since September 11, 2001, but in actuality Al Qaeda has not managed a successful attack since October 2002. He explains that many terrorist groups claim to be Al Qaeda since they have more notoriety than any other group, in the hopes that their agenda will be furthered through the use of Al Qaeda’s name and fame. Atran concludes the article by stating that the current terrorism policies are likely to fail, due to the fact that there needs to be a better understanding of the morals and values of jihadis (Atran, 2006).
“The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism” by Robert Pape is one of the best-known and most cited articles on suicide terrorism. Being one of the first of its kind, it is referenced in at least 10 other articles on the same topic. For this article, Pape studied suicide terrorism worldwide from 1980 to 2001, which equaled 188 total attacks. He analyzed, compared, and contrasted the reasons for the attacks, the types of people involved in the attacks, how the attacks were carried out, etc. He discussed at great length the fact that there are three types of terrorism: demonstrative, destructive, and suicide, of which suicide is the most aggressive form of terrorism (Pape, 2003).
Pape explains the coercive logic of suicide terrorism, explaining how suicide terrorism is mostly about coercing their opponents to do what they want them to do. He goes on to detail numerous cases in which suicide terrorism actually worked and the opponent conceded. He follows this up with methods to contain suicide terrorism, such as stopping the concessions to suicide terrorists. The more we concede to suicide terrorists, the more powerful suicide terrorism becomes. Pape concludes the article by outlining the limits of suicide terrorism. He purports that large goals are not likely to be attained through suicide terrorism, as has been the case with all of the attacks on U.S. soil (Pape, 2003).
The article “Rethinking Suicide Bombing” by Neil Aggarwal attempts to analyze the various methods currently used to study suicide terrorism. The article begins by reviewing the most popular existing literature on suicide terrorism, comparing and contrasting different aspects of each article. The article then goes on to explain how better suicide terrorism could be studied. Aggarwal believes that instead of focusing on religious fanaticism or psychological issues, it would be better to use a multi-level approach that focuses on the types of organizations, the nationalist conflict, and the community ties amongst other reasons (Aggarwal, 2009).
Article Discussion
Due to the intricate nature of suicide bombings, there are many different viewpoints on the subject, causing the literature to vary depending on the author’s biases and personal feelings.
Beginning with the history of suicide terrorism, it is plain to see that vast differences abound. Pape (2003) and Grimland et. al (2006) believe that suicide terrorism can be substantially dated back to the 1980s, but others such as Caldararo (2006), Atran (2006), and Kassim (2008) attempt to date it back hundreds and thousands of years, before biblical times even. These differences in timeframes arise from the fact that the definition of suicide terrorism leaves a large area open for individual interpretation.
According to Kassim (2008), religion does not play a major role in the current trend of suicide bombings, yet, Pape (2003) strongly disagrees because most extremist groups are rooted in some form of religion, even if their goal is not necessarily religious. While Atran (2004) also disagrees with Kassim, his reasoning is different than Pape’s. He feels that the attacks are not just rooted in religion but are also religiously motivated.
Pape (2003) argues that suicide terrorism is considered to be successful if the attacked country or group concedes to the suicide terrorist’s demands. Atran (2006) disagrees, in that he feels that suicide attacks may also be considered successful if the terrorist organization is able to recruit new members after an attack, hinging on the fact that the individuals were impressed with the suicide terrorism, whether or not the country or group offers a concession.
There does seem to be a general consensus among all of the authors, that the individuals committing these crimes are not poor, ignorant, mentally ill career criminals, but rather they tend to be from prominent and wealthy families, most are college educated, none have ever had any history of mental illness, and most have never been arrested or charged with any crimes previously. Atran (2006) quotes Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Hamed Al-Betawi as saying “Those who undertake martyrdom actions are not hopeless or poor, but are the best of our people, educated, successful. They are intelligent, advanced combat techniques for fighting enemy occupation.”
The authors all appear to be in agreement that U.S.
policies on terrorism are weak and misguided. Due to the varying information on who commits suicide terrorism, when, where, why, and how, it makes it difficult for the U.S. to truly nail down the best method to combat suicide terrorism. One thing that most of the authors did mention however, is that concession should not be an option where these crimes are concerned, because that only gives the terrorists the idea that their method is not only good, but also successful in furthering their agenda, be it political, religious, etc.
Another aspect that remains true across the board and cannot be disputed is the facts. While Pape’s (2003) facts are the most thorough, everyone else uses the same facts and in turn cites Pape’s research. Given that his research covers such a vast amount of time (1980 to 2001), it is inevitable that the other researchers use his research as a basis, whether they agree with his interpretation and findings or not.
Theory …show more content…
Summaries
Rational Choice Theory: This is a theory belonging to the Classical school of Criminology, and was developed by Clark and Cornish in 1985 (Tucker-Gail, 2010, Goal 2). Rational Choice Theory is based on a cost-benefit analysis, which means that an individual weighs the pros and cons of committing a crime before in fact making the rational choice to commit the crime. While this theory appears to be logical, there are numerous problems with it. This theory does not take into account any social factors. This theory also assumes that all individuals know what are and what are not crimes and have the same abilities to rationalize. Rational Choice also does not allow for anything except free will, hedonism, and rationality, not taking into account gender, race, age, etc (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Social Learning Theory: This is a theory of Criminology that was developed by Burgess and Akers.
This theory is basically that individuals learn criminal behaviors by observing the behaviors of others in their society. It would appear that learning theory would be easy to use to shape and mold individuals to function “properly” in society, yet it is not. There are significant issues with this theory. Individuals are not always going to observe positive behaviors, so does that mean that all individuals who observe negative behaviors will repeat these behaviors? Could it be possible that individuals might do the exact opposite and observe positive behaviors while practicing negative behaviors and vice versa? Are all individuals apt to repeat the behaviors of others or is it only for weak-willed individuals (Tucker-Gail, 2010, Goal
6).
Social Bond Theory: This is a theory of Criminology that was founded by Travis Hirschi. This theory focuses on social control in that it believes that individuals are socially influenced not to commit crimes based upon their attachments, commitments, involvements, and beliefs. If individuals are around other individuals with positive norms and values, they will also pick up on and mimic these concepts. One issue here is that these individuals could also pick up on negative concepts just as easily (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Theory Discussion
Rational Choice Theory is rooted in Classical Criminology, which is based around free will, hedonism, and rationality, and does not take social factors into account. This is in direct opposition to the Social Bond Theory, as it is based directly on social aspects, and how social and environmental factors can positively or negatively affect human behavior. Rational Choice is also in direct opposition to Social Learning Theory, given that it is also centered on social aspects, which are virtually non-existent in Rational Choice (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Social Learning Theory and Social Bond Theory are similar in that they both involve social aspects, and the influence of the environment on the behaviors of humans. Rational Choice however is not due to influence, but rather the individual’s own choices. The individual weighs their options and then choose to commit or not commit crimes, which is unlike the other two where the individual does not so much choose to commit crimes, as they are influenced into doing so by their social surroundings (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Rational Choice Theory is the theory that best explains suicide terrorism. These individuals are not coaxed, brainwashed, or influenced to participate in these acts, but rather they make the conscious decision to participate. They weigh the pros and cons of giving up their life for their cause, and ultimately they choose to do so. This is a rational choice (depending on one’s definition of rational), and an individual choice.
Research Design/Methodology
Suicide terrorism is a suicide attack that is designed to kill others and inflict widespread damage, during which the attacker expects to die during the process (Suicide Attack, n.d.). In recent years, suicide terrorism has become an increasingly popular method of furthering religious, political, and military agendas, and it appears that the attacks are becoming more frequent. More research needs to be done on the subject in order to determine who might commit these attacks, when, where, and how best to stop them.
If I were to study suicide terrorism, I would do empirical research designed to figure out who commits suicide terrorism and why. This might further assist our governments in approximating when and where terrorist attacks may take place, which might make it easier to stop the organizations. Personally, I believe that suicide terrorism is a very dangerous subject to delve into, and researching it just might get someone killed, especially if the organizations feel threatened. However, using finesse it might actually be possible to get information from these individuals, under the guise of helping them to further their agendas through media outlets, but yet again, this puts the researcher in a precarious and dangerous position.
I would collect data on all documented past suicide attacks, which would make my research vastly different from that of Robert Pape (the leading researcher in suicide terrorism), who only collected data on suicide attacks from 1980-2001. While it would be much harder to collect data dating back to biblical times, it is not impossible, as long as the information is documented and proven. My research would also include the years from 2001-2010, which Pape’s obviously lacked considering his research was done in 2001.
The only method of research that I could possibly use for this type of subject would be qualitative research. Using qualitative research, I would be able to analyze and compare existing data, as well as do observational research. Most of the research would consist of statistical analysis of existing data, but where possible, if I could safely do any type of first hand observation, I most certainly would, in order to gain a broader perspective. It would be extremely helpful to be able to interview current or former members of insurgent organizations, as well as their families and friends. Being able to interview these individuals would help to broaden the research and include aspects that would not be included if only the existing data were to be researched. I strongly feel that there must be individuals in these organizations that are weak links and would be willing to disclose pertinent information, however, the issue would be convincing them to trust me. I believe that there must be many plausible methods that our governments could employ to stop suicide terrorism from becoming an even larger threat to national safety than it already is, but until the proper research proves it, nothing will be done (Cohen, Gail, n.d.).
Suicide terrorism could have a drastic effect on the war on terrorism and our policies, but this has not happened yet. The problem is that our government does not fully understand suicide terrorism, therefore the policies created are lacking in strategic logic, and will not aid in eliminating suicide terrorism. Governments first need to put more funding towards understanding the individuals that actually become suicide terrorists, which is the only way to truly get to the heart of the issues. The governments also need to understand the backgrounds, educations, family lives, and mental issues of these individuals. The governments should also put funding towards learning why the individuals become suicide terrorists. If the understanding of their reasons for suicide terrorism is incorrect, policies cannot be created to combat them. Lastly, it would be a good idea for governments to focus on educating potential suicide terrorists on our country and our ideals, so that maybe any misconceptions or falsehoods that might lead an individual to join an insurgent group can be squelched before the individuals begin to believe them (Cohen, Gail, n.d.).
Conclusion
Suicide terrorism is a horrible crime that is costly to the citizens as well as the terrorists. Using suicide in order to prove a point while taking the lives of innocent bystanders in unconscionable, but to the suicide terrorists, it makes complete sense. They want their governments to listen, they want our governments to listen, they want the military to listen, and they want religious groups to listen, so maybe we should all start listening. While suicide terrorism seems like an extremely radical method of proving a point, it does in fact prove its point. Creating policies to combat suicide terrorism could prove to be quite helpful for the nations affected by it, and truly appears to be the only method of action. Trying to rationalize with the insurgent groups will more than likely not result in any type of truce, because in our opinion they are not rational. What they are doing is extreme and illogical to most individuals; therefore it will make it hard to bridge the gap between us (citizens) and them. Hopefully in years to come, as more information is gathered about suicide terrorism, better policies can be put into place that will actually help combat this increasing issue. Until these policies are in place, I believe that most countries affected by suicide terrorism will continue to see an increase in these attacks.
References
Aggarwal, Neil (2009). Rethinking Suicide Bombing. Crisis, 30(2): 94-97.
Atran, Scott (2004). Mishandling Suicide Terrorism. The Washington Quarterly, 27(3): 67-90.
Atran, Scott (2006). The Moral Logic and Growth of Suicide Terrorism. The Washington Quarterly, 29(2): 127-147.
Caldararo, Niccolo (2006). Suicide Bombers, Terror, History, and Religion. Anthropological Quarterly, 79(1): 123-131.
Cohen, Gail (n.d.). Research Methods for Criminology & Criminal Justice. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/about_5366066_research-methods-criminology criminal-justice.html.
Grimland, M., Apter, A., & Kerkhof, A. (2006). The Phenomenon of Suicide Bombing: A Review of Psychological and Nonpsychological Factors. Crisis, 27(3): 107 118.
Kassim, Sadik H. (2008). The Role of Religion in the Generation of Suicide Bombers. Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention, 8(2): 204-208.
Pape, Robert A. (2003). The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism. American Political Science Review, 97(3): 343-361.
Pape, Robert A. (2008). Methods and Findings in the Study of Suicide Terrorism. American Political Science Review, 102(2): 275-277.
September 11 Attacks. (n.d.) In Wikipedia online. Retrieved from http://www.wikipedia.org.
Suicide Attack. (n.d.) In Wikipedia online. Retrieved from http://www.wikipedia.org.
Winfree, L.T. and Abadinsky, H. (2010). Understanding Crime: Essentials of Criminological Theory. 3rd Ed. Belmont: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 2. University of Toledo.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 6. University of Toledo.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 7. University of Toledo.
Introduction
September 11, 2001 is a date that is forever embedded into the minds and hearts of most U.S. Citizens. On this date, multiple terrorist attacks were unleashed on the country, killing 2,973 civilians, as well as the 19 hijackers, and injuring over 6,000 others. Globally, this was the largest suicide terrorist attack ever, and while it was by no means the first, it was by far the worst (September 11 Attacks, n.d.).
Suicide terrorism is said to date back to biblical times with the story of Samson defeating 3,000 Philistines by killing himself along with them (Suicide Attacks, n.d.). Centuries later, suicide terrorism has become an increasingly popular method of furthering religious, political, and military …show more content…
agendas, but contrary to popular belief, religious agendas are actually the least popular reason for suicide terrorism. There is not currently a vast amount of information available about suicide terrorism, and not much research has been done on the subject, but what has been done has been vital. The current research has led to an understanding of the reasons for suicide terrorism, and an understanding of the individuals that commit these crimes. The only issue is that the research varies from researcher to researcher.
Literature Review
Article Summaries
The article “The Role of Religion in the Generation of Suicide Bombers” by Sadik H. Kassim seeks to dispense with the idea that suicide terrorism is largely based on religion. Kassim details the history of suicide bombings, gives statistical data on who commits these crimes, and also gives alternative reasons for these attacks (Kassim, 2008).
Kassim begins the article by explaining that most people believe that suicide bombings are rooted in religion, yet the statistical data appears to defy that idea. The author continues by revealing the types of individuals that commit these bombings, and contrary to popular belief, these individuals do not appear to be mentally ill, and many of these individuals are college-educated, most have families, and most come from middle to upper class families. This article sheds light on many common misconceptions of suicide attacks, and really gives the reader a good sense of what these individuals are about (Kassim, 2008).
The article “The Phenomenon of Suicide Bombing: A Review of the Psychological and Nonpsychological Factors” by Meytal Grimland, Alan Apter, and Ad Kerkhof attempts to bring logic to somewhat of an illogical process. The authors present various reasons and typologies to explain who commits suicide bombings and why. The article begins by giving a short history of suicide bombings, which some might be surprised to find can only be dated back to the early 1980s. The authors cite numerous examples of events that are commonly misrepresented as suicide bombings, dating all the way back to biblical times with the story of Samson (Grimland, M. et al., 2006).
In the next section, Grimland, Apter, and Kerkhof focus on the epidemiological aspects of suicide terrorism. Apparently, suicide attacks have increased drastically in the last five years, and are used to further political agendas. Suicide bombings are usually motivated by nationalistic pride, the need for revenge, hatred, or military strategy. These individuals generally have no psychological issues. Grimland, Apter, and Kerkhof go on to discuss the role of the media in glorifying suicide bombings. According to the article, culture and religion do play major roles in these attacks. From Judaism to Christianity to Islam, many of these groups perform these attacks based upon the cultures and religions that they have been taught to hate (Grimland, M. et al., 2006).
The article “Suicide Bombers, Terror, History, and Religion” by Niccolo Caldararo is an article that looks into multiple facets of suicide terrorism, but the main focus is that suicide terrorism is not a new phenomenon and should not be treated as such, and by doing so, the media is promoting suicide terrorism. The article gives a history of suicide terrorism, which it attempts to date back to the mass suicide of the Xanthians during the Roman Civil War, which was in 42 B.C. It goes on to discuss facts and frequency of suicide terrorism in relation to different terrorist groups, such as the Tamil Tigers, the Viet Minh, and the Turkish PKK. The article concludes by warning the United States that instead of looking at suicide terrorists, analyzing them, and trying to figure out why they would do what they do, we need to look within our own country and figure out what it is that we are doing to make the suicide terrorists want to do what they do (Caldararo, 2006).
The article “Mishandling Suicide Terrorism” by Scott Atran takes a look at the reasons for suicide terrorism, and basically explains why the tactics that our country has devised to combat suicide terrorism may not work, and what other options are available. The article begins by giving a bit of background on suicide terrorism and how popular it has become in order to emphasize the need for a solution. Atran then goes on to criticize our country for not putting enough effort or funding into seeking a solution for suicide terrorism. Next, the author clears up many misconceptions about suicide terrorism, by explaining that the individuals are not ignorant, do not live in poverty, and do have families and friends (Atran, 2004).
Atran explains that suicide terrorists, as well as their supporters are not irrational, which is what most people would tend to believe. The individuals involved in suicide terrorism are usually doing so because of political, religious, or economic reasons, which is really not at all irrational. The author goes on to discuss studies where average individuals have been pushed to the limits to test their penchant for evil, and many rational, sensible individuals can be pushed to extreme levels that one would never believe themselves capable of. Atran concludes by giving methods for the United States to be able to stop suicide terrorism, such as pulling out of other countries. He quotes defense attorney Robert McNamara as saying “We don’t have the God-given right to shape every nation to our own image,” and this statement furthers the idea that maybe if we minded our own business, we would not have the issues that we do with suicide terrorism, and terrorism period (Atran, 2004).
“Methods and Findings in the Study of Suicide Terrorism” by Robert A. Pape is an article that seeks to supplement Pape’s 2003 article “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism”, and update some information that may be considered outdated. He describes the circumstances under which suicide terrorism is most likely, which include: a national community is occupied by foreign power, the foreign power is a democracy, the foreign power is of a different religion, and ordinary violence has not been successful. He then goes on to explain why his first article is not null and void and that it should still be considered as valid, but that some of the information has changed due to time, which is inevitable with articles of this nature (Pape, 2008).
“The Moral Logic and Growth of Suicide Terrorism” is an article by Scott Atran. This article explains the reasons for suicide attacks according to Atran. He also spends much of the article disagreeing with some of the findings of Robert Pape, stating that “Pape’s basic data, correlations, and conclusions about the causes of terrorism are problematic, outdated in the wake of the September 11 attacks and sometimes deeply misleading.” He explains that there are four critical flaws in Pape’s research. He believes that there are sampling issues. He also believes that Pape’s conclusions are both too narrow and too broad. He states that Pape should not judge the success of suicide tactics on whether concessions are made by the terrorized country. Lastly, he believes that Pape made an error when stating that suicide terrorism is scarcely related to Salafi ideology (Atran, 2006).
Atran moves on in his article to discuss the fact that Al Qaeda has been blamed for much of the suicide terrorism and terrorism in general since September 11, 2001, but in actuality Al Qaeda has not managed a successful attack since October 2002. He explains that many terrorist groups claim to be Al Qaeda since they have more notoriety than any other group, in the hopes that their agenda will be furthered through the use of Al Qaeda’s name and fame. Atran concludes the article by stating that the current terrorism policies are likely to fail, due to the fact that there needs to be a better understanding of the morals and values of jihadis (Atran, 2006).
“The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism” by Robert Pape is one of the best-known and most cited articles on suicide terrorism. Being one of the first of its kind, it is referenced in at least 10 other articles on the same topic. For this article, Pape studied suicide terrorism worldwide from 1980 to 2001, which equaled 188 total attacks. He analyzed, compared, and contrasted the reasons for the attacks, the types of people involved in the attacks, how the attacks were carried out, etc. He discussed at great length the fact that there are three types of terrorism: demonstrative, destructive, and suicide, of which suicide is the most aggressive form of terrorism (Pape, 2003).
Pape explains the coercive logic of suicide terrorism, explaining how suicide terrorism is mostly about coercing their opponents to do what they want them to do. He goes on to detail numerous cases in which suicide terrorism actually worked and the opponent conceded. He follows this up with methods to contain suicide terrorism, such as stopping the concessions to suicide terrorists. The more we concede to suicide terrorists, the more powerful suicide terrorism becomes. Pape concludes the article by outlining the limits of suicide terrorism. He purports that large goals are not likely to be attained through suicide terrorism, as has been the case with all of the attacks on U.S. soil (Pape, 2003).
The article “Rethinking Suicide Bombing” by Neil Aggarwal attempts to analyze the various methods currently used to study suicide terrorism. The article begins by reviewing the most popular existing literature on suicide terrorism, comparing and contrasting different aspects of each article. The article then goes on to explain how better suicide terrorism could be studied. Aggarwal believes that instead of focusing on religious fanaticism or psychological issues, it would be better to use a multi-level approach that focuses on the types of organizations, the nationalist conflict, and the community ties amongst other reasons (Aggarwal, 2009).
Article Discussion
Due to the intricate nature of suicide bombings, there are many different viewpoints on the subject, causing the literature to vary depending on the author’s biases and personal feelings.
Beginning with the history of suicide terrorism, it is plain to see that vast differences abound. Pape (2003) and Grimland et. al (2006) believe that suicide terrorism can be substantially dated back to the 1980s, but others such as Caldararo (2006), Atran (2006), and Kassim (2008) attempt to date it back hundreds and thousands of years, before biblical times even. These differences in timeframes arise from the fact that the definition of suicide terrorism leaves a large area open for individual interpretation.
According to Kassim (2008), religion does not play a major role in the current trend of suicide bombings, yet, Pape (2003) strongly disagrees because most extremist groups are rooted in some form of religion, even if their goal is not necessarily religious. While Atran (2004) also disagrees with Kassim, his reasoning is different than Pape’s. He feels that the attacks are not just rooted in religion but are also religiously motivated.
Pape (2003) argues that suicide terrorism is considered to be successful if the attacked country or group concedes to the suicide terrorist’s demands. Atran (2006) disagrees, in that he feels that suicide attacks may also be considered successful if the terrorist organization is able to recruit new members after an attack, hinging on the fact that the individuals were impressed with the suicide terrorism, whether or not the country or group offers a concession.
There does seem to be a general consensus among all of the authors, that the individuals committing these crimes are not poor, ignorant, mentally ill career criminals, but rather they tend to be from prominent and wealthy families, most are college educated, none have ever had any history of mental illness, and most have never been arrested or charged with any crimes previously. Atran (2006) quotes Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Hamed Al-Betawi as saying “Those who undertake martyrdom actions are not hopeless or poor, but are the best of our people, educated, successful. They are intelligent, advanced combat techniques for fighting enemy occupation.”
The authors all appear to be in agreement that U.S.
policies on terrorism are weak and misguided. Due to the varying information on who commits suicide terrorism, when, where, why, and how, it makes it difficult for the U.S. to truly nail down the best method to combat suicide terrorism. One thing that most of the authors did mention however, is that concession should not be an option where these crimes are concerned, because that only gives the terrorists the idea that their method is not only good, but also successful in furthering their agenda, be it political, religious, etc.
Another aspect that remains true across the board and cannot be disputed is the facts. While Pape’s (2003) facts are the most thorough, everyone else uses the same facts and in turn cites Pape’s research. Given that his research covers such a vast amount of time (1980 to 2001), it is inevitable that the other researchers use his research as a basis, whether they agree with his interpretation and findings or not.
Theory …show more content…
Summaries
Rational Choice Theory: This is a theory belonging to the Classical school of Criminology, and was developed by Clark and Cornish in 1985 (Tucker-Gail, 2010, Goal 2). Rational Choice Theory is based on a cost-benefit analysis, which means that an individual weighs the pros and cons of committing a crime before in fact making the rational choice to commit the crime. While this theory appears to be logical, there are numerous problems with it. This theory does not take into account any social factors. This theory also assumes that all individuals know what are and what are not crimes and have the same abilities to rationalize. Rational Choice also does not allow for anything except free will, hedonism, and rationality, not taking into account gender, race, age, etc (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Social Learning Theory: This is a theory of Criminology that was developed by Burgess and Akers.
This theory is basically that individuals learn criminal behaviors by observing the behaviors of others in their society. It would appear that learning theory would be easy to use to shape and mold individuals to function “properly” in society, yet it is not. There are significant issues with this theory. Individuals are not always going to observe positive behaviors, so does that mean that all individuals who observe negative behaviors will repeat these behaviors? Could it be possible that individuals might do the exact opposite and observe positive behaviors while practicing negative behaviors and vice versa? Are all individuals apt to repeat the behaviors of others or is it only for weak-willed individuals (Tucker-Gail, 2010, Goal
6).
Social Bond Theory: This is a theory of Criminology that was founded by Travis Hirschi. This theory focuses on social control in that it believes that individuals are socially influenced not to commit crimes based upon their attachments, commitments, involvements, and beliefs. If individuals are around other individuals with positive norms and values, they will also pick up on and mimic these concepts. One issue here is that these individuals could also pick up on negative concepts just as easily (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Theory Discussion
Rational Choice Theory is rooted in Classical Criminology, which is based around free will, hedonism, and rationality, and does not take social factors into account. This is in direct opposition to the Social Bond Theory, as it is based directly on social aspects, and how social and environmental factors can positively or negatively affect human behavior. Rational Choice is also in direct opposition to Social Learning Theory, given that it is also centered on social aspects, which are virtually non-existent in Rational Choice (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Social Learning Theory and Social Bond Theory are similar in that they both involve social aspects, and the influence of the environment on the behaviors of humans. Rational Choice however is not due to influence, but rather the individual’s own choices. The individual weighs their options and then choose to commit or not commit crimes, which is unlike the other two where the individual does not so much choose to commit crimes, as they are influenced into doing so by their social surroundings (Winfree & Abadinsky, 2010).
Rational Choice Theory is the theory that best explains suicide terrorism. These individuals are not coaxed, brainwashed, or influenced to participate in these acts, but rather they make the conscious decision to participate. They weigh the pros and cons of giving up their life for their cause, and ultimately they choose to do so. This is a rational choice (depending on one’s definition of rational), and an individual choice.
Research Design/Methodology
Suicide terrorism is a suicide attack that is designed to kill others and inflict widespread damage, during which the attacker expects to die during the process (Suicide Attack, n.d.). In recent years, suicide terrorism has become an increasingly popular method of furthering religious, political, and military agendas, and it appears that the attacks are becoming more frequent. More research needs to be done on the subject in order to determine who might commit these attacks, when, where, and how best to stop them.
If I were to study suicide terrorism, I would do empirical research designed to figure out who commits suicide terrorism and why. This might further assist our governments in approximating when and where terrorist attacks may take place, which might make it easier to stop the organizations. Personally, I believe that suicide terrorism is a very dangerous subject to delve into, and researching it just might get someone killed, especially if the organizations feel threatened. However, using finesse it might actually be possible to get information from these individuals, under the guise of helping them to further their agendas through media outlets, but yet again, this puts the researcher in a precarious and dangerous position.
I would collect data on all documented past suicide attacks, which would make my research vastly different from that of Robert Pape (the leading researcher in suicide terrorism), who only collected data on suicide attacks from 1980-2001. While it would be much harder to collect data dating back to biblical times, it is not impossible, as long as the information is documented and proven. My research would also include the years from 2001-2010, which Pape’s obviously lacked considering his research was done in 2001.
The only method of research that I could possibly use for this type of subject would be qualitative research. Using qualitative research, I would be able to analyze and compare existing data, as well as do observational research. Most of the research would consist of statistical analysis of existing data, but where possible, if I could safely do any type of first hand observation, I most certainly would, in order to gain a broader perspective. It would be extremely helpful to be able to interview current or former members of insurgent organizations, as well as their families and friends. Being able to interview these individuals would help to broaden the research and include aspects that would not be included if only the existing data were to be researched. I strongly feel that there must be individuals in these organizations that are weak links and would be willing to disclose pertinent information, however, the issue would be convincing them to trust me. I believe that there must be many plausible methods that our governments could employ to stop suicide terrorism from becoming an even larger threat to national safety than it already is, but until the proper research proves it, nothing will be done (Cohen, Gail, n.d.).
Suicide terrorism could have a drastic effect on the war on terrorism and our policies, but this has not happened yet. The problem is that our government does not fully understand suicide terrorism, therefore the policies created are lacking in strategic logic, and will not aid in eliminating suicide terrorism. Governments first need to put more funding towards understanding the individuals that actually become suicide terrorists, which is the only way to truly get to the heart of the issues. The governments also need to understand the backgrounds, educations, family lives, and mental issues of these individuals. The governments should also put funding towards learning why the individuals become suicide terrorists. If the understanding of their reasons for suicide terrorism is incorrect, policies cannot be created to combat them. Lastly, it would be a good idea for governments to focus on educating potential suicide terrorists on our country and our ideals, so that maybe any misconceptions or falsehoods that might lead an individual to join an insurgent group can be squelched before the individuals begin to believe them (Cohen, Gail, n.d.).
Conclusion
Suicide terrorism is a horrible crime that is costly to the citizens as well as the terrorists. Using suicide in order to prove a point while taking the lives of innocent bystanders in unconscionable, but to the suicide terrorists, it makes complete sense. They want their governments to listen, they want our governments to listen, they want the military to listen, and they want religious groups to listen, so maybe we should all start listening. While suicide terrorism seems like an extremely radical method of proving a point, it does in fact prove its point. Creating policies to combat suicide terrorism could prove to be quite helpful for the nations affected by it, and truly appears to be the only method of action. Trying to rationalize with the insurgent groups will more than likely not result in any type of truce, because in our opinion they are not rational. What they are doing is extreme and illogical to most individuals; therefore it will make it hard to bridge the gap between us (citizens) and them. Hopefully in years to come, as more information is gathered about suicide terrorism, better policies can be put into place that will actually help combat this increasing issue. Until these policies are in place, I believe that most countries affected by suicide terrorism will continue to see an increase in these attacks.
References
Aggarwal, Neil (2009). Rethinking Suicide Bombing. Crisis, 30(2): 94-97.
Atran, Scott (2004). Mishandling Suicide Terrorism. The Washington Quarterly, 27(3): 67-90.
Atran, Scott (2006). The Moral Logic and Growth of Suicide Terrorism. The Washington Quarterly, 29(2): 127-147.
Caldararo, Niccolo (2006). Suicide Bombers, Terror, History, and Religion. Anthropological Quarterly, 79(1): 123-131.
Cohen, Gail (n.d.). Research Methods for Criminology & Criminal Justice. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/about_5366066_research-methods-criminology criminal-justice.html.
Grimland, M., Apter, A., & Kerkhof, A. (2006). The Phenomenon of Suicide Bombing: A Review of Psychological and Nonpsychological Factors. Crisis, 27(3): 107 118.
Kassim, Sadik H. (2008). The Role of Religion in the Generation of Suicide Bombers. Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention, 8(2): 204-208.
Pape, Robert A. (2003). The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism. American Political Science Review, 97(3): 343-361.
Pape, Robert A. (2008). Methods and Findings in the Study of Suicide Terrorism. American Political Science Review, 102(2): 275-277.
September 11 Attacks. (n.d.) In Wikipedia online. Retrieved from http://www.wikipedia.org.
Suicide Attack. (n.d.) In Wikipedia online. Retrieved from http://www.wikipedia.org.
Winfree, L.T. and Abadinsky, H. (2010). Understanding Crime: Essentials of Criminological Theory. 3rd Ed. Belmont: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 2. University of Toledo.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 6. University of Toledo.
Tucker-Gail, K.A. (2010). CRIM 6000-001 Goal 7. University of Toledo.